No respite for lakhs of commuters as TSRTC strike enters 25th day

Hyderabad, Oct 29 : Lakhs of commuters continued to bear the brunt of the indefinite strike by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation, which entered its 25th day on Tuesday.

Protest rallies and dharnas in front of depots by the striking employees continued unabated. A total bandh was being observed in Sattupalli town in Khammam in response to call given by the RTC Joint Action Committee to protest against the suicide of woman conductor on Monday.

The APSRTC unions, which had extended support to the striking TSRTC employees on Tuesday, stressed that the main demand of the striking employees to merge the TSRTC with the government should be conceded. Meanwhile, the Telangana High Court will resume hearing on the petitions over the RTC strike this afternoon.

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao held an emergency meeting with senior officials on the government's points of views to be presented during the court hearing. The Advocate General is expected to present the view points discussed in the meeting before the court.

Meanwhile, the authorities denied permission to the JAC to conduct "Sakala Janula Samme" (massive protest) planned for Wednesday. Most opposition parties had extended support to the proposed "samme".

It may be recalled that such a "Sakala Janula Samme" was conducted during the movement for separate Telangana state. (UNI)